UK parent companies’ legal liability for human rights abuses and environmental damage overseas has been a high-profile topic throughout 2019. This week the UK Supreme Court gave its decisions on Nigerian and Kenyan communities’ requests to appeal in their claims against Shell and Unilever.

Zambia, Barotse Floodplain – November 2012. Photograph by Felix Clay.

In a historic ruling, the UK Supreme Court has allowed 1,826 Zambian villagers to continue to pursue their case (Lungowe v. Vedanta) against UK-based mining giant Vedanta in the UK courts. This blog, by CORE’s Policy and Communications Officer, Louise Eldridge, explores the implications of the ruling. It was originally posted by Africa is a Country.

Several political processes currently underway in the UK offer civil society space to push the Government on mandatory human rights due diligence (mHRDD), writes Marilyn Croser, CORE’s Director. This blog was originally published by the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre.

CORE and 15 other NGOs, unions, investors and multi-stakeholder organisations have signed a statement asking the Government to take tough action to ensure companies make serious efforts to eradicate modern slavery from their supply chains.

CORE Coalition and 48 other civil society organisations from around the world are calling on the UK Supreme Court to allow two Nigerian fishing communities to appeal against a ruling that oil giant Shell cannot be held responsible for pipeline spills that devastated their land and livelihoods.

We examined the manifestos of UK political parties’ contesting the European elections, to be held in the UK on 23 May 2019. What do they say about the protection of human rights and the environment with regard to the global operations of UK companies?

Brazil is losing ground on eradicating modern slavery from its supply chains. Lessons learned from the implementation of the UK Modern Slavery Act could be the starting point for future legal developments in South America’s largest country, says Caio Borges from leading Brazilian NGO, Conectas Human Rights.

In her blog, Caroline Emberson of the Rights Lab, University of Nottingham, describes findings from a research project investigating the supply chain effectiveness of modern slavery legislation.

CORE and more than 20 organisations are launching a call for legal reform to make UK multinationals accountable for human rights abuses and environmental damage linked to their global operations and supply chains.

Claire Bright, Research Fellow in Business and Human Rights at the British Institute of International and Comparative Law (BIICL) write about the obstacles to justice for victims of corporate human rights abuses, and how they might be overcome.